'When I grow up I want to be a synthesizer' is an installation consisting of a piano, a microphone, headphones and a laptop. Together with 'when I grow up I want to be a chesscomputer' by Nicola Unger it was shown at the 'Sideshow' exhibition in Kinderdijk (NL). On the keys of the piano stickers are placed that form the word 'synthesizer'. When you sit down, put on the headphones and start pushing some keys, small samples of what you are playing are being recorded, and played back to you. A total of 20 samples are dynamically stored while the piano is being played. The way they are being played back (order, loudness, how many at a time, interval between samples, etc) depends on the sounds you produce. If you play loud, more samples are being played back to you, creating more chaos. If you play soft with lots of intervals, more subtle compositions arise. The installation introduces the player to a simple system that changes the way the piano is being played. This has a surprising result, both for the player as for the people in the room who do not wear headphones and can only hear the actual piano sound.

'When I grow up I want to be a chesscomputer' is an installation in which 2 people engage in a game of chess. Everytime a piece is moved, the players hear a different sound played back to them over headphones. This very simple system results in very interesting games of chess, ranging from people using the chessboard as a musical instrument, to people seeing a logical relationship between the kind of chessmove that is being made, and the sound it creates. (2003)